Canada's Top Small & Medium Employers (2026) Magazine - Magazine - Page 66
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CANADA’S TOP SMALL & MEDIUM EMPLOYERS (2026)
Willson International employees adapt and collaborate
I
n her 19 years at Willson
International, Therese De
Leon had never seen such an
overwhelming workload for
the Mississauga, Ont.-based
customs brokerage as when the
United States imposed tariffs on
Canadian imports in early 2025.
“You can only imagine the
amount of phone calls we were
getting when a truck was stuck
at the border because the tariffs
were exceeding the client’s
credit limit,” says De Leon,
senior credit and collections
specialist. “We were sending out
multiple announcements and
communications to customers.
Customers were consistently
calling because they did not know
what to do or what tariffs applied
to them. It was very chaotic.”
Willson’s 300 employees
collaborated closely to persevere.
De Leon says she had to quickly
learn new processes and customs
documentation. “Departments
were collaborating in unique ways.
Operations was overwhelmed, so
the credit team assisted them, and
accounting assisted us. There was
significant cross-departmental
training and increased
communication between teams.”
Sheri Gonyou, vice-president,
Canadian brokerage operations
and regulatory affairs, says the
company had to adjust processes
quickly to stay aligned with new
requirements. “We implemented
new workflows to support our
staff,” she says. “We often had to
pivot on short notice to meet client
demands and regulatory updates.
There were numerous team
members working late to ensure
that everything aligned with the
government changes.
“I can’t tell you how incredibly
proud I am of the teamwork and
professionalism, because there
were considerable last-minute
announcements and our team had
to jump into action quickly.”
De Leon says that constant
communication from the
president and management
helped employees succeed
in getting through the rapid
changes and overwhelming client
inquiries.
“They made sure everyone was
updated with new information
and how to communicate that
information to the clients,” she
says. “We would have multiple
meetings throughout the week.
One day a meeting with finance,
and then another day with sales,
and then with operations. The
exchange of information from the
various departments — and what
they had been experiencing and
questions that had come up —
helped us tackle the issues more
efficiently.
“Kudos to all the departments
because we were really working
together.”
Gonyou says the leadership
team thought it was important
to provide regular updates and
consistent information to help
teams stay focused and confident
in their work.
Willson also expanded its
team, bringing in more people to
interpret and apply the new rules
and regulatory requirements. “We
I can’t tell you how incredibly proud I am of the
teamwork and professionalism, because there were
considerable last-minute announcements and our
team had to jump into action quickly.
— Sheri Gonyou
Vice-President, Canadian Brokerage Operations and
Regulatory Affairs
The credit and collections team at Willson International.
